By MIKE DiMAURO

OK. I know what you’re thinking. You see “Boston College football” and “College Football Playoff” in the same sentence.

And you summon your inner Jim Mora. “Playoffs? Playoffs? You kiddin’ me?”

I get it. But let me humbly suggest that while the college football fan in me hates the idea of the proposed (and gaining momentum) 24-team playoff structure, the BC loyalist in me loves it.

That’s because it gives the program a chance at the postseason it does not have right now.

Some history: Fourteen times in BC football history have its teams finished in the top 25 – 11 since 1982 – thus triggering the general idea that had a 24-team structure been in place, BC would have made the playoffs in each of those seasons. (Hell, the Flutie to Phelan year, 1984, the Eagles would have had a first-round bye).

For the sake of argument, the 11 finishes since 1982 are modest compared to the blue bloods, but still a decent number. I don’t think that with more commitment to the program, particularly through more NIL opportunities for the players, that finishing in the top 24 would be considered extreme heavy lifting.

This is not a giddy overreaction to a very nice win over Pitt on Saturday at Alumni Stadium. This is simple reality. Put it this way: Of all the great things that happened Saturday – Landon Wright’s emergence and Mason McKenzie’s accurate deep throws at the top of the list – the very best thing that happened came after the game.

Father Jack was in the locker room.

That’s right. Father John T. “Jack” Butler, Boston College’s 26th President, celebrated all weekend at his inauguration, got the game ball from Bill O’Brien to the cheers of all the kids. Father Jack was even wearing an old school BC cap with the Adidas logo, meaning he’s had it for a while. To me, this is more than symbolic. This is a new era, personified. There’s a new sheriff in town and he cares about sports, namely football, for which he was once team chaplain.

When the man at the top cares about sports, the inevitable trickle down happens. This has a chance to be a magnificent trickle. And it’s tied to the premise of this column. If Father Jack cares, they all care. And when they all care, the program gets everything it needs to succeed. And maybe more. 

I’m not going to suggest, as others have, that Father Leahy ignored sports. But I always got the feeling he viewed them as a nuisance, rather than their more proper function as a great campus uniter and a window into the rest of the university. Father Jack gets it. 

“When I trained for Pro Day, I had to come in at 6 a.m. to use the facility before the team,” former BC receiver Dino Tomlin wrote on X after Saturday’s game. “Father Jack Butler would be getting done working out when I got there. Not a facade! Football guy! Pushed real weight, too!”

Boom. 

I know last week wasn’t great for the program. Kenyatta Watson’s mysterious departure was a horrific look, later exacerbated by a dreadful start against Pitt. But then, perhaps the rest of Saturday was a microcosm of what is to come: hang in there, better days ahead. 

As previously stated: The college football fan in me hates the 24-team thing. It cheapens what college football does best: perpetual regular season games with playoff implications, exactly what college basketball cannot deliver. Twenty-four teams zaps much of the drama. Example: Alabama will play LSU on Nov. 7 in what becomes a de facto 2026 elimination game. Two of the game’s heavyweights playing for their lives. It’s just the kind of theater a 24-team structure won’t deliver.

But from the BC perspective? Hey, they’ve done it 11 times since 1982. Translation: It’s doable. I know that BC football gives us all O.T.S.D. (Ongoing Traumatic Stress Disorder). But with the right coaching and support, well, if you’ve already done something 11 times, you should be able to do it a 12th.

My BC friends will tell you I’m rarely a glass half full guy. I’m more like: It’s not merely half empty, but one of those trick dribble glasses that’ll ruin your best shirt. But even at 3-3, they had Virginia Tech down in the fourth quarter and went toe to toe at SMU. And have we mentioned Mason McKenzie appears to be tougher than Clorox?

Better days are coming, folks. So root for the 24-team structure. And have faith in the new sheriff.

Mike DiMauro, a columnist in Connecticut, is a contributor to Eagles Daily and a member of BC’s Class of 1990. He may be reached at m.dimauro@theday.com or on X @BCGenius

Saturday afternoon’s matchup against Pittsburgh was shaping up to be another disappointing one for Boston College, as the Eagles found themselves trailing 12-0 midway through the first quarter. However, behind a career performance from quarterback Mason McKenzie and several timely defensive stops, the Eagles were able to overcome their early struggles, defeating the Panthers 27-21 for their first ACC victory of the season.

The afternoon could not have gotten off to a much worse start for the Eagles. On the first play from scrimmage, Pitt quarterback Corey Dailey connected with receiver Cataurus Hicks for a 75-yard touchdown, giving the Panthers a 7-0 lead just 18 seconds into the game. Things would only get worse for BC, as a safety and a 28-yard field goal from Antonio Chadha extended Pittsburgh’s lead to 12-0.

Fortunately, the Eagles were able to find some offensive rhythm late in the opening quarter. McKenzie led BC on a 14-play, 75-yard drive, highlighted by several double-digit gains and a 17-yard rush from Bo MacCormack III. MacCormack would eventually punch the ball into the endzone from one yard out, cutting the Panthers’ lead to five.

The Eagles’ defense, which had looked vulnerable early, began to settle in during the second quarter. Captain KP Price came up with a crucial interception, giving McKenzie and the offense possession near midfield with just over two minutes remaining in the half. Seven plays later, McKenzie connected with Javarius Green for an 11-yard touchdown, giving the Eagles a 14-12 lead heading into the locker room.

Coming out of halftime, McKenzie wasted little time extending that lead. On BC’s opening possession of the third quarter, the redshirt sophomore found Landon Wright for a 69-yard touchdown, the longest completion of his career. Suddenly, an Eagles team that had looked completely outmatched in the opening minutes held a 21-12 advantage.

Unfortunately, the Panthers were not going away quietly. Pittsburgh responded with consecutive field goal drives, cutting BC’s lead to just three points heading into the fourth quarter. While Ted Roof’s defense had largely kept the Panthers out of the endzone, Pitt continued to move the football with relative ease.

However, McKenzie and Wright would connect once again, this time for a 53-yard gain that set up an Evan Dickens rushing touchdown. The score gave BC a 27-18 lead, although a missed extra point left the door open for Pittsburgh.

The Panthers responded with another field goal, bringing the score to 27-21 with just over eight minutes remaining. And with BC unable to put the game away offensively, Pittsburgh would get another opportunity to steal the victory. Fortunately for the Eagles’ faithful, Charlie Comella intercepted Dailey with under two minutes remaining, allowing BC to run out the clock.

McKenzie finished the afternoon with a career-high 295 passing yards and two touchdowns, while Wright contributed 122 receiving yards. Defensively, Carter Davis and Price recorded 11 and 10 tackles, respectively, helping the Eagles overcome an otherwise shaky performance.

While Saturday’s victory was undoubtedly encouraging, it was far from perfect. BC surrendered 392 total yards, including 199 on the ground, and McKenzie’s two interceptions nearly proved costly. Still, the Eagles managed 398 yards of their own and capitalized on a Pittsburgh team that committed 133 penalty yards.

After entering the afternoon with a disappointing 2-3 record, BC now sits at .500 with its first conference victory under its belt. The Eagles will travel to Atlanta next Saturday to face Georgia Tech, where they will look to build on what was arguably their most encouraging performance of the season.

Today’s game against Virginia Tech was always going to be a messy one in Chestnut Hill, with 50 mile-per-hour windgusts and torrential downpours promised by the forecast. However, the Eagles certainly were not expected to hang in this game as well as they did, leading by as much as eight points, before Tech scored touchdowns on back-to-back drives in the fourth quarter, en route to their 21-14 victory over the Eagles. 

Ted Roof’s defense, led by captains KP Price and Anthony Palano, held the Hokies to a remarkable three points in the first half. Virginia Tech ended the first half with five punts and a fourth-and-out. The BC-faithful could not have asked for a better start to the game defensively. 

Unfortunately, as stymied as the Hokies’ offense was, the Eagle’s offense was worse, failing to score a single point in the first half. This afternoon, the Eagles seemed to have one key philosophy: trust quarterback Mason McKenzie to figure it out. And in the opening half, they did not find much success. The Eagles had as many punts as they had first downs in the half, and put up just 117 total yards as a team. 

However, coming out of the locker room, McKenzie and the Eagles seemed to find a bit more of a rhythm offensively. On their second possession of the third quarter, McKenize connected with receiver Javarius Green for a 19-yard gain, before breaking off a 45-yard QB draw to the right. And the following play, McKenzie would scamper into the endzone, before Luca Lombardo’s extra point gave the Eagles their first lead of the game. 

Roof’s defense remained steadfast, forcing a fumble and a turnover on downs on their two subsequent possessions, giving the Eagles possession with the lead going into the fourth quarter. What followed was the Eagles’ best series of the afternoon, a 9-play 67-yard drive highlighted by a 20-yard red zone connection between McKenzie and Dawson Pough. Then, McKenzie was able to get in the endzone for his second rushing touchdown of the day, giving the Eagles a 14-6 lead with 11 minutes to play. 

Unfortunately, the Boston College defense ran out of steam, as the next six minutes of gametime saw them concede a gutting 10-play 80-yard touchdown drive, a two point conversion, and an overwhelming 76-yard rush to Tech’s Jeffrey Overton (featuring a potential missed hold on Palano). Overton’s score would ultimately serve as the nail in the coffin for the Eagle’s second loss of the young season. 

While teh Eagles came into this game fresh off of an embarrassing 22-16 win against FCS opponent Maine, and were 14-point underdogs against the Hokies, their performance was marred by 89 penalty yards, a poor 2-13 third-down conversion rate, and only 13 non-McKenzie yards. 

The Eagles will continue their season next Saturday with a road game against 22nd-ranked SMU. And while this afternoon’s performance against the Hokies was far from perfect, BC should have some positive momentum to build off of heading into Dallas.